Antimalarials such as chloroquine diphosphate have been widely used not only for the treatment of malaria, but also for several rheumatic diseases such as Sjögren's syndrome (SS), rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE). These drugs are used on a long-term basis and, due to melanocytes' accumulation, can cause cutaneous hyperpigmentation, retinopathy and internal ear damage. As the antimalarials' user follow-up protocol recommends only periodic eye exams and liver function testing, we reviewed the literature questioning whether new studies on the periodic hearing evaluation are required for antimalarials' users.
antimalarials; chloroquine; ototoxicity